Author Archives: Arab America

On Sunday and Monday, when Muslims will celebrate the end of Ramadan, even many who are less observant the rest of the year will be at mosques to pray. But many worshippers will celebrate amid heightened security after a recent spike in attacks on mosques and other places of worship. “We recommend a security guard … Continued

Following attacks on seven U.S. mosques in the last two weeks, including three attacks last weekend, many Muslim Americans are approaching the end of Ramadan on Sunday (Aug. 19) under a cloud of fear as Muslim groups try to increase security without spurring panic. According to reports, vandals shot paintballs at the Grand Mosque of … Continued

For many years, Hassan M. Abdallah was the face of Arab Americans in Chicago. The Palestine-born resident of Hickory Hills served in the Arab League, helped build the Bridgeview mosque, and worked as a government diplomat until his death at 73-years-old. Abdallah was buried at Evergreen Cemetery in 1999, left to rest underneath a stone … Continued

Travel back to the Golden Age of Muslim civilization — from the seventh to the 17th centuries — with a new exhibition opening at the National Geographic Museum this summer. “1001 Inventions: Discover the Golden Age of Muslim Civilization” is an award-winning traveling exhibition that highlights the enormous contribution to science and technology made by … Continued

Bugs Bunny has a commemorative U.S. Postal Service stamp. Wonder Woman has a stamp. Dennis the Menace, Archie, Garfield the cat—they all have commemorative U.S. Postal Service stamps. Do you know who does not have a stamp? World-renowned literary lion Kahlil Gibran, a Lebanese-born American immigrant who wrote much of his vastly influential and inspirational … Continued

The American-Arab Anti-Discriminaton Committee (ADC), reports a dramatic surge of violent activity and harassment directed at places of worship, less than two weeks after the tragedy that occured at the Sikh Gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. In total there has been nearly a dozen cases of attacks and harassment since the Oak Creek shooting. Although … Continued

William Nix and his Creative Projects Group have launched development of a biopic centering on Lebanese-American artist-poet Khalil Gibran. Sibling screenwriters Grace Shalhoub Yazbek and Rob Shalhoub are scripting. Nix plans to begin seeking a director next month for the live-action project, which would cover the career and character of Gibran, who is best known … Continued

They’re popping up on public transit all over New York and San Francisco: Advertisements sponsored by anti-Muslim blogger Pamela Geller that imply Muslims are “savages,” dismiss “Islamophobia” as “Islamorealism,” and urge passengers to “support Israel” and “defeat jihad.” This isn’t the first time Geller, who warned America about “stealth halal” turkeys last Thanksgiving, has used … Continued

It’s the type of musical opportunity that comes around just once in a lifetime: a passionate Arabic orchestra, with a pair of stellar guest vocalists from Lebanon, performing beloved traditional songs at southeast Michigan’s most historic venue. The New York Arabic Orchestra – America’s leading orchestra devoted to Arabic classical and contemporary music – makes … Continued

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee’s Michigan chapter condemned vandalism over the weekend at Mother of the Savior Lutheran Church, 19100 Ford Road, east of Evergreen Road. The Rev. Rani Abdulmasih told police that two outer window panes on the building’s south side were broken. Police found that thrown crabapples broke the outer panes, but did not … Continued

Almost from the beginning of their coverage of the horrific and deadly shooting at the Sikh temple in Wisconsin, CNN and other news media went out of their way to send a message to the American public: “Sikhs are not Muslims.” But what were we to make of that message? If the temple’s members had … Continued

To keep pace with rapidly changing notions of race, the Census Bureau wants to make broad changes to its surveys that would treat “Hispanic” as a distinct category regardless of race, end use of the term “Negro” and offer new ways to identify Middle Easterners. The recommendations released Wednesday stem from new government research on … Continued